


"Life is Like Riding a Bicycle"

by hajo4354



Category: Veronica Mars - All Media Types
Genre: Drug Use
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-05
Updated: 2020-04-21
Packaged: 2021-02-26 06:14:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,939
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21678844
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hajo4354/pseuds/hajo4354
Summary: “Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.”Logan and Carrie are living together, as happy as the two of them can really be. But the high school reunion is looming, and with it people Logan hasn't seen in 9 years or so...AU of the movie, if the murder wasn't the impetus of it.
Relationships: Carrie Bishop/Logan Echolls, Logan Echolls/Veronica Mars
Comments: 11
Kudos: 66





	1. Part 1

Logan’s hand ran through blonde hair, kissing her deep, her breath mixing with his. He pulled away stare into her blue eyes, forehead resting against hers, unbelieving that it was really her, that he had her in his arms again. He knew every curve, and as his hands ran up the sides of her, palms brushing over her breasts, her breath caught in that familiar way. She hummed slightly and Logan couldn’t resist from smiling. 

“Logan,” she sighed, as he pulled her shirt over her head.

“Veronica,” he said, pausing to look down at her, before lifting her up and feeling her legs wrap around him…

A loud tune screamed into his ear and Logan’s eyes squeezed shut harder, trying to keep Veronica there with him.

“Logan, get the alarm.” Logan’s eyes reluctantly opened this time, reaching for his phone and shutting the alarm off.

“Babe it’s a Saturday why would you set the alarm?” Logan was on his side still, and he felt her move closer to him, hand on his arm. He finally flipped over, looking into brown eyes beneath brown hair. 

“Sorry, Carrie, must’ve forgot.” His smile didn’t quite reach his eyes, and Carrie was quick to notice. She was always quick to notice when he wasn’t the happy and supportive rock she needed him to be.

“Bad dream?” She asked, hand trailing along his abs, before dipping lower. “Oh, doesn’t seem like it was a bad dream,” finding his hard erection leftover from his… was it a nightmare or the best dream he’d had in weeks?

Carrie leaned over him, kissing him as her hand continued to stroke beneath the sheets. Logan shut his eyes, trying to dispel the dream and be with Carrie. All the little things were wrong though, her voice too loud, too deep. He remembered Veronica’s soft voice saying “Logan” in the dream, drowning out all of Carrie’s moans. When he flipped Carrie over onto her back he remembered Veronica’s blue eyes when they had stared up at him, the trust that filled them outweighing the lust in Carrie’s brown eyes. His hand reached down to Carrie’s clit, rubbing it the way he knew she liked, trying to get her off quickly. It worked, of course, and as he came after her he had to keep from moaning “Veronica.”

His guilt got the best of him, and as Carrie lit her first cigarette of the day he got up to take a shower. What was wrong with him? He hadn’t thought of Veronica in months, maybe even longer than that. He definitely hadn’t spoken to her in at least…9 years he decided, as he did the math.

The time had flown by of course, the military keeping him busy after college and Carrie keeping him busy when the military didn’t. They’d met again at a bar that Dick had drug him to. He’d hardly recognized her, but she had recognized him. She had definitely been on something, of course, and she had come up to him and hugged him, speaking so fast and catching him up on her life. That was before she had hit it big, before she changed her name, before the first album was out. All she had then were demos under her original name being sent around and rich friends to party with. Logan smiled fondly, remembering why he had asked her out. She’d had hope then, hopes of hitting it big, hopes for her future, hope in humanity and people. It bubbled out of her that night, obviously fueled by the drugs, but was still there when he saw her next, sober before the next party started. It was a beach day, and he was mostly just there to surf. And she was there in denim shorts, hair in a ponytail, no performance of anything, and she had just looked so honest and open. Surrounded by all the rich kids all the time, he liked someone that wasn’t jaded, more down to earth than the Madison and Dick’s of Neptune. 

Logan shut the water off and buried his face in a towel, scrubbing hard. The booze and hard drugs had come later, harder and harder with each album she put out. Changing her name at the request of the record label had changed her, distancing herself from her identity. That same openness he had loved left her vulnerable, and she didn’t patch herself up in the right ways. Logan had tried to be there, through the overdoses and the razors and everything, but he couldn’t always do it.

The tabloids lived for his and Carrie’s on-again off-again tumultuousness. He left when he thought she wasn’t trying to get better, or when she found solace with other men. She left when his anger got the best of him; his own demons rarely outweighed hers, but on the bad nights when they appeared she got scared away. But things were different this time around, or at least had been going okay for longer than usual. They were coming up on a year straight, and he had taken up living with her when he wasn’t deployed somewhere. She was a far better roommate than Dick, for pretty much every reason. Case in point, she had a cup of coffee poured for him as he walked downstairs. Logan was pretty sure Dick didn’t even know how a coffee machine worked. 

Carrie’s fame had afforded her a beautiful view of the ocean, sunny and a bright blue this morning. Idyllic, people had said at the parties Carrie hosted, or whatever basic variation of that word the strung out people she called friends could think of. He stared at the waves, still trying to get out of the funk of the morning dream. He did the math again; it had really been nine years since he and Veronica had talked. There was a time when young Mr. Echolls could never have conceived of not having Veronica in his life, but here he was.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Carrie asked. 

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.”

Carrie gave him a wry smile. “Today’s inspirational quote courtesy of a famous gymnast?”

“Albert Einstein, actually.”

They lounged around the kitchen all morning, until finally Carrie had to leave for a lunch meeting with some producer. Logan just hoped it was the kind of producer who didn’t think cocaine was a good way to bond with the talent.

“Bring home lots of bacon, honey,” Logan quipped, as she bent to give him a kiss.

Carrie laughed, gathering up her keys and purse. “Oh, I keep forgetting to ask you, did you hear the high school reunion is next week? Should I tell my assistant to RSVP yes for us?"

Logan’s dream made sense to him now, he’d overheard Madison planning at the last 09er gathering. Of course the old ghosts were going to come out to play in his subconscious. “Sure, why wouldn’t I be down to reminisce on the worst years of my life?”

Carrie stopped moving around and just stared at him. He sighed. “Joking baby, I’ll go if you want to go.”

“Dick, Madison, Gia, the whole crew is going, it’s gonna be fuuunnnn,” she drew out the last word as she walked back over to him, giving him a long kiss.

“Alright, alright, you’ve convinced me.”

Logan knew it would be a repeat of all the debaucherous nights that same group always had, just at a more nostalgic venue. They had managed to avoid all that for a while; Carrie was really trying to be better, with varying levels of success.

Logan grabbed his surfboard, hoping the waves could help him clear his head. He didn’t want to hope too much that a certain small blonde would show up, and was afraid of what would happen if she did.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everyone has been so kind, comments and kudos are getting me through finals, thank you all!

The school had gone cheap and hosted the reunion in the gym. Turns out the 09ers weren’t displeased with the choice of venue; when money could open the doors to any club it was fun to party where you usually weren’t allowed. Carrie and Logan walked in together, immediately flooded with unwanted nostalgia. There was Logan’s locker, there was the bathroom, apparently in good working order with no fake sign to warn otherwise. Neptune Pirate themed streamers and balloons led them to the gym, all decked out in green and yellow. Thankfully, a makeshift bar was right near the entrance. Everyone must have felt the same relief Logan did at the sight; the bartenders looked like they definitely weren’t getting paid enough to deal with the giant mass of people wanting to get inebriated enough to be excited to see people from their past.

A giant burp behind him alerted Logan to Dick’s arrival.

“Dude, why are you waiting in line there, I’ve got the party right here!” He indiscreetly pulled out a little baggie.

“You brought molly to the school reunion?” Carrie asked.

Logan had been thinking the same thing, but in his mind the tone was much more incredulous than Carrie’s excited one.

“Hell yeah, it’s about to get freaky in this gym!”

Carrie took her dose from Dick, and Logan looked away, never happy to see her take solace in drugs. He stopped himself from asking her if she was sure, if it was a good idea. He wasn’t up for having this argument for the thousandth time, not tonight. Everyone had already seen them fight so much in public it could have been the center spot on a “09er party” themed bingo card.

Logan waved Dick’s proffering hand away. Someone should be able to get them home if the trip went south. Dick smiled, nodding knowingly. “Don’t worry bro, I’ve got coke too if you want it later, I know you like the lighter stuff.”

Logan scoffed, what kind of a world had he become a part of where coke was the lighter drug? “You know I love soda,” he said to Dick before turning to the bar. Carrie had already become bored of the conversation and wandered to the dance floor, as had most of the other people, drinks in hand.

“Scotch, your most expensive please.” He watched her pour and added, “Better make it a double,” and slid a large bill across the bar, “keep the change.” She poured a little extra into his glass, winking at him as she grabbed the bill. Logan gave a polite smile and drifted around the edge of the dance floor.

It looked as though Dick had plenty of customers that night, and the dancing got crazier with every throwback song the DJ put on. Logan leaned against a cocktail table, sipping slowly, remembering the last time he had been in the gym. There was a time he thought that he wouldn’t graduate, or even be alive to do so. He envied everyone whose parents had been there, cheering them on. Trina hadn’t even bothered to fly in from whatever B-list movie she was working on. He remembered Veronica’s shocked face when everyone cheered for her, as if she couldn’t believe that they all didn’t hate her. The rest of Logan’s scotch poured down his throat easily, washing away the memory.

He waded into the sea of dancers, sneaking up behind Carrie and wrapping his arms around her waist, kissing her neck. She responded by placing her hands on his where they gripped her hips, grinding back against him to the beat. He pulled her tighter against him, knowing that the drugs had her mind elsewhere, but at least she was physically in his arms.

“Go girl!” Gia cheered as they grinded deeper, egging Carrie on. She bent all the way over, fingers grazing the floor before flipping her hair up, chest seductively rolling as she stood back up, putting on a show now. Logan enjoyed the view, how could he not? But this dance wasn’t for him; she knew people were looking, and she couldn’t help but try to keep their gaze. When they used to go out she had been the embodiment of the old cliché “dance like no one is watching,” but a couple of dance lessons on a music executive’s dime had taught her to put on a production. 

Logan yelled in Carrie’s ear, “I’m getting another drink.” Her dancing hardly skipped a beat as he extricated himself from the crowd. She obviously didn’t need him for the spectacle she was putting on.

And then there she was, at the bar. Nine years later and he could still recognize her anywhere, even without seeing her face. Her hair was different, longer, but she still held herself with the same confidence, the same command of the room, which if you were really looking was just a defense against everyone else. He knew how to look and see, he had always seen. 

“Well of all the gin joints,” he said, squeezing into the spot next to her. Veronica looked up at him, the height difference unchanged through the years, catching her smile halfway before it could fill her face. Logan knew she was remembering the good and the bad all at once, happy to see him, but remembering why it had been so long in the first place. The bartender remembered Logan’s last big tip and came right up, giving Veronica a few seconds as he ordered the same drink, another large bill sliding across the bar.

“It’s nice to come home and see things haven’t changed,” she said. “The cash is a classy move though, much more suave than the black AmEx.”

Logan chuckled, glad that the match for his wits hadn’t lost her edge. Carrie could never quite keep up. “How have you been Veronica?”

“Well, my life hasn’t been splashed across the pages of every magazine, isn’t it funny to live the life of obscurity? Although you and Carrie seem to have been going strong lately, you lovebirds haven’t shown up in my grocery line tabloid skimming in a while.”

Logan dropped his eyes to his drink, saved from answering by the DJ.

“Alright Pirates, this next song is a request from Julie, throwing you all back to alterna-prom!”

“I like this song,” Veronica said automatically, before she remembered the last time she had said that, and then it was her turn to look down into her drink.

“Yeah, me too,” Logan said softly. “Look, I…”

Veronica’s head shot up, eyes begging him not to say anymore. Logan faltered.

“There you are babe!” a man walked over and slid his arm around Veronica’s waist.

“Logan, you remember Piz, right?” she said, not making eye contact with him.


	3. Chapter 3

Piz looked as if he would rather have seen anyone else in the world except for Logan. 

“Of course, how could I forget?” Logan said, regretting his choice of words as soon as he had said them. The odd trio had a silent moment to remember exactly why it would be impossible for them to forget each other. 

Logan tried to shake it off. “How are you doing, man?” He asked, holding out his hand. 

Piz didn’t set his drink down to or shift his arm away from Veronica to shake his hand. 

Logan dropped his hand. Alright then, Piz hadn’t fully forgiven him. Logan could hardly blame him, he had really done a number on the guy. 

Everyone stood sipping their drinks as the moment passed from mere awkwardness into some greater realm of social torture. Salvation came from Carrie, her show apparently done, maybe realizing she hadn’t seen Logan all night, maybe because the drugs were making her thirsty.

Her pupils were wide as she walked up to Logan; she was peaking on the molly for sure. She walked into him so roughly he hit the bar. She drew his head down for a kiss, hands slipping into his back pocket. Definitely thirsty, just for him apparently. He went along with her for a second, before it was a little too much to be publicly appropriate. Logan managed to pull her away long enough to distract her by saying, “Carrie, you remember Veronica?”

Carrie looked her up and down, trying to place her in her memory. 

After a few seconds of letting her struggle Veronica jumped in. “I helped you get a teacher fired?”

Carrie nodded, faintly remembering.

“You pretended you were pregnant? And I didn’t believe you?”

Carrie’s high brain finally caught up. “Veronica Mars! Oh my god how are you, what have you been up to?” Her voice rose an octave with her recognition and excitement. 

“If I had a dollar for every time someone asked me that tonight I might actually be able to afford a drink here.”

Logan noted that it was the second non-answer from Veronica as to what she had done since she left Neptune.

Piz introduced himself to Carrie, and Logan left the conversation to get a drink for her. If he ordered it, he knew it wouldn’t be so strong, and he had drained his drink in the awkward moment before and knew the conversation wasn’t quite over yet. 

The bartender wasn’t quite as friendly as she had been when she thought Logan’s big tips were his way of flirting; his kiss with Carrie had definitely been pretty attention grabbing. When he got back to the conversation, Piz and Carrie were deep into a conversation about music. 

“Piz works in radio now,” Veronica said, “working for a pretty big station in New York. If Carrie’s not careful she’s going to be giving him an exclusive interview here soon.”

“Seems innocent enough for now,” Logan said. Carrie’s eyes were brighter now, talking about music. Logan thought back to when they had been dating, and she would drag him to a concert from someone he had never heard of and her eyes would be just like that, the excitement of music something that spoke to her in a way nothing else did. They hadn’t been to a concert in a while, he thought, not one that wasn’t hers at least. 

Logan handed her the watered down drink and she smiled at him and kept on talking about some band that he was sure she’d made him listen to at some point.  
“So really, where is the infamous Veronica Mars putting her detective skills to work now?” Logan asked, caving to his curiosity.

She did smile nostalgically at his lighthearted reference to private sleuthing. “I just graduated law school, actually. Colombia, in New York.”

“Congratulations, that’s amazing!” Logan wondered why she wasn’t throwing that out there to everyone she talked to tonight. She had put up with everyone’s shit in high school, including a fair bit from himself. Usually when people came to reunions after going through constant trials and tribulations it was to gloat. And combing back to face all these 09er clowns with a law degree, that was really something.

“I’m supposed to start a job Monday at a big firm in New York.”

“So you figured a casual trip home was in order to remind yourself what you had escaped?”

“Wallace and Mac are to blame for that, I thought I was showing up to this weekend for non-reunion related reasons.” 

Logan laughed, picturing Veronica’s face when she realized what was really on the agenda for the trip. “And where are they?”

“Wallace has to chat with all the basketball guys, of course, and Mac should be somewhere around here. They both did a better job making friends in high school than I did.”

All of the scotch was finally hitting Logan, and he and Veronica stood in companionable silence, listening to their significant others debate the merits of vinyl records and instant streaming music.

“Have you and Piz been dating all this time?”

Veronica laughed. “No, things were put on hold when I transferred to Stanford. We reconnected in New York about a year ago.” Her voice dropped to be quieter. “He’s really good for me, Logan.” To him it sounded like she was trying to convince herself more than anything. Or maybe just make sure he wasn’t going to beat Piz up again. Still, Logan figured this must be what mature adults who used to date talk about. Even if she didn’t sound like she loved Piz, it sounded like she was trying. He glanced at Carrie. He knew how that felt. 

Gia came running up to Carrie, breaking off the music discussion that was still going strong.   
“After party at my place!”

Carrie turned to Logan, excitement in her drugged out eyes, and he shrugged his agreement that they would go. Gia clapped with just a tad too much enthusiasm before turning to Veronica and Piz and shamelessly interrupting them. “You have to come too Veronica! It’s been so long and all that stuff from before, totally in the past, it’s like whatever now you know?”

Veronica smiled in the patient way she reserved for 09ers who weren’t aware of their own ridiculousness. Logan had been on the receiving end of a fair amount of those smiles. 

“Actually, I think my boyfriend and I have plans…” Veronica trailed off looking at Piz. 

“We don’t have to go anywhere urgent, don’t you want to catch up with everyone some more?”

Logan tried to hide his wry smile by bringing his glass to his lips. Veronica had always been clear how much she had hated high school and practically everyone in it. Clearly someone hadn’t gotten the memo.

Gia’s house was downtown, a fashionable loft that had been refurbished from an old warehouse in a previously seedy part of town that now only the most wealthy and comfortable with gentrification could afford to live in. Logan and Carrie had been there many a time, with a fair share of both really fun and really terrible nights.

Gia had the music pumped loud by the time everyone started arriving, and the copious bottles of liquor were lined up on the massive marble topped island. “It’s serve yourself tonight, hope you don’t mind!” she called out as each new group came in.

Logan offered to make Carrie a drink, again looking to give her a watered down something. If she kept up he could probably get away with just giving her cups of water and calling it vodka. 

Mild drink passed off to Carrie, Logan sat next to Dick on a couch, barely listening as he prattled on about some girl he was attempting to woo at the moment. Each time the door opened he not-so-casually looked to see whether or not Piz had managed to convince Veronica to come or if she had convinced him it wasn’t worth it. He felt like he was in school again, sitting in class, hoping that she was going to be there today, waiting even until after the tardy bell for her to slip in.

As the minutes went on Logan was ready to reassign himself to not seeing Veronica again for another 10 years until the next reunion when she did walk in, Piz, Wallace and Mac behind her. Logan drained his drink for the pretense of needing to go to the kitchen to get another.

Veronica was sifting through the bottles and muttered to herself, “Are any of these unopened?” Logan felt a twinge of guilt. He’d always feel responsible for what had happened to Veronica at that party so many years ago, part of the reason Veronica couldn’t trust a drink bought for her by someone else. So many of the current crowd had probably been at Shelly’s party, no wonder her worries were heightened. 

Piz just looked at her. “Come on Veronica, don’t be ridiculous, everyone else is drinking everything.” He left the kitchen with his drink before Veronica could say anything back. 

Betraying that he’d been eavesdropping, he turned around and said, “I think there are beers in the fridge.” She silently opened the door and grabbed a bottle and Logan handed her the bottle opener. She cracked it open, tossing the bottle cap onto the counter with a little more force than was probably necessary. 

They leaned against the counter side by side, and he let her take a drink before saying, “I didn’t think you’d come, to this or any of it.” He left the I didn’t think I’d get to see you again unspoken. 

Veronica smiled ruefully. “It was truly all Piz. Mac told him that it was coming up and then they crafted this whole plan. Piz thinks I am being ungrateful because I am loathing every moment of being here.” She took another sip of beer. “And of course it doesn’t help that you are here, he does hate you a little bit,” she said, laughing. “I’m not always so particular you know,” lifting her beer bottle up slightly. “But being back here, these people...I just wouldn’t put it past them.”

“I get it, we don’t have stellar track records.” 

The song changed, and he had so many things he wanted to ask her. Did she and Piz always fight so much, did she love him, did she ever think about leaving him, did she have random dreams about Logan like he did of her? As if his questionable line of thinking summoned him, Piz was back, charming Veronica with a plea for a dance together. 

Logan sighed and decided to bring some water to Carrie, ever the dutiful boyfriend. Veronica and Piz were dancing with Wallace and Mac, the small group appearing to have the most fun out of everyone. Lighthearted energy rolled off them, spreading to the rest of the increasingly sloppy room. 

Carrie wasn’t dancing in the main room, and Logan knew she sometimes felt like the roof was a better place to be, so she could be “closer in conversation with the stars” or whatever the drugs told her was better about being up there. Logan slipped into Gia’s bedroom, out the window to the fire-escape that led to the roof. The night was mild and he wished that the lights of the town actually allowed for more of the stars to be visible. 

Logan heard Carrie’s laughter behind some bit of ventilation equipment or what not. He followed the sound and came around the back to find Carrie embraced by some man he didn’t recognize, probably some philandering husband of a Neptune alum.

Logan just stared for a moment, trying to determine how he felt. Betrayed and hurt, assuredly. But could he say he was surprised? And deep down, in that dark part of him, wasn’t he a little relieved, that now he could call it quits, it could all be over with her, he wouldn’t have to look out for her anymore?

They still hadn’t noticed him after this moment of introspection, so he cleared his throat. The man said “fuck” before pushing Carrie away from him, like more physical distance would confuse Logan as to what he had seen, lessen the damning nature of the act. Definitely a philandering husband then, he acted too guilty.

“Logan I…” Carrie started talking and Logan stopped her with a hand and passed her the drink.

“Enough Carrie. Just no more. Drink some water.”

“Enough what?” she asked, her voice small.

“The drugs, the cheating, all of it. I’m done.” He was surprised with how he felt. He figured it was going to hurt a lot more later, but right now he was just angry and relieved. 

He walked back to the fire-escape, saying, “Didn’t look like you two were done, don’t stop on my account. She’s free now.”

Logan half-expected her to chase after him, to yell after him, something. But there was just silence, and Logan knew this time it was finally over, no more on-again off-again tabloid-selling drama for them. 

Back inside, Logan found Dick trying to convince two women to let him do body shots off of them. The whole room truly seemed to be regressing back to high school antics, fueled by the nostalgic throwbacks Gia was playing at ever-increasing volumes.

He interrupted Dick’s entreaties. “So Carrie and I are done, might need a place to crash.”

Dick held up a hand. “Say no more bro, mi casa is su casa. Excuse me ladies, duty calls.” DIck had pulled out a small plastic bag out of his pocket, and Logan couldn’t even protest before Dick was saying, “It’s the cure for a break up dude, come on. It’s probably not even good shit, my dealer knows I’ll pay for anything.”

Logan wasn’t sure he believed the former statement but definitely believed the latter. They waded through the drunk dance floor to get to the guest room, the official unofficial drug ingesting room. Somewhere along the way Veronica was at his side. 

“Are you okay, Logan?” 

He was surprised. She obviously knew him just as well as he knew her, able to tell when something was off.

“Carrie and I are done, Dick here was ready to offer me a band-aid for that.”

Veronica didn’t say she was sorry, and Logan could tell from her face that she was deciding what to say. Before she could congratulate him on escaping the relationship, he asked, “Come with us?”

The closed door of the guest bedroom muffled all the sounds from the party. They watched Dick make the lines on the dresser and tightly roll up a $50 bill. “Never thought we three would be doing lines together, I’ll tell you that! An epic story for the future.”

Veronica and Logan looked at each other at the words “epic story,” even with how different they sounded when Dick said them. Logan remembered for the second time tonight so long ago when he had made that dramatic speech, and everything they had been through together, all the memories bitter and sweet. Veronica appeared to be thinking the same thing, quickly breaking his intense gaze. 

Dick passed the bill to Veronica, saying “Ladies first!”

Veronica handed it back. “I’m just here to watch.”

Dick laughed. “C’mon Ronnie! It’ll make it easier to deal with everyone out there. We’ll go first,” taking his line with an over-dramatic whoop at the end. 

Logan took his next, feeling the buzz in his head as he stood up. Veronica was watching him, gave him a second to truly feel it. “Are you really that heartbroken about Carrie?”

Veronica did always know how to ask a direct question. He handed her the bill with a small smile. “Nah, I mean, it was a long time coming.” 

Veronica nodded and took her line, her proficiency showing Logan that she had obviously done this before. He guessed they could still surprise each other.

He waited a second like she had done for him before asking, “Do you really love Piz?”

DIck laughed awkwardly. “My cue to leave folks, enjoy the last two lines on the house,” before leaving. 

Veronica looked at him angrily. “Yes, Logan, I do.”

Logan knew she was stubborn enough to not say what she was feeling if she knew it was something he wanted to hear. “I don’t believe you.” 

She picked up the bill and took the next line. “What do you want me to say? That I was hoping you would be here, and maybe that’s why I let myself get talked into coming?”

That was more than Logan had actually hoped to hear. He stepped a little bit closer to her, looking down at her face. 

“Logan, Piz is still here…” She trailed off as he leaned in, kissing her. He’d kissed her in his dreams so many times, but this was more than he even remembered. They fit together like nothing had ever changed, like she was meant to always be with him. His fingers gingerly touched her sides, and as her hands came up around his neck he was emboldened, his hands running down her back. It seemed like forever and no time at all when she pulled away, shaking her head. 

“I’m a bad person Logan, my boyfriend is on the other side of that door, he came all the way to California with me. I have to go.”

“Veronica, please, stay, or get rid of him and come back! Stay at Dick’s with me, or we can go anywhere, as long as it’s together.” 

She smiled sadly. “I need to go Logan.”

He sat on the bed, watching her open the door, the noise getting louder briefly before she shut it out again. He had been so momentarily happy, one perfect second where the woman he loved, really and truly loved, had been in his arms, had made him hope that maybe they could be together. He stood up, already feeling himself build up a wall around the memories of tonight, already trying to tamp down the emotions with explanations. It was just the drugs, it was just the nostalgia of being back in the school. Maybe if he said them enough it would all be okay.

He took the last line, he was anything but wasteful, but it hardly did anything to lift his mood. He found Dick and obviously looked miserable enough that Dick was willing to leave the party, and they sat silently in the Uber to his place. 

Logan woke in Dick’s guest room, and he could tell his head was going to be pounding before he even sat up to test it. Actually everything was sore, the cocaine had truly done a number on him. He gingerly walked to the bathroom, rinsing his mouth and washing his face with cold water in an attempt to feel human and escape the hangover. 

Dick was making breakfast and Logan couldn’t tell if he was hungry or nauseous. He decided that some coffee would split the difference well enough. Every sip brought him a little bit closer to clarity, and he remembered the night before, all the emotions a little subdued under the hangover cloud. He knew he shouldn’t have hoped for anything with Veronica, that had never ended well for him, why should it have been different this time around?

There was a knock on the door, and Dick swore loudly from where he was cooking. “It’s too fucking early, come back later!”

Logan glanced at the clock. It was noon, a perfectly normal time for people to come calling, and he got up to answer the door. 

And for the second time in two days he was surprised by Veronica’s appearance. She hardly looked hungover, maybe the slightest of dark circles, but Logan could hardly care. She had shown up on his door. 

“So uh, Piz is headed back to New York. We had a much needed conversation last night, and then a more rational one this morning without us both being inebriated. I told my dad I was going to stay for a few more days, needed some time to think things through.” She had been looking down while speaking, but turned her eyes up to him, a smirk on her face. "It's not just about you, you know!" She was getting defensive before he even had a chance to let it stoke his ego. "I wasn't sure about the job, or anything. I need some time to get things straight." Her voice got a little bit smaller. "But I did want to see you again, too."

He smiled, the effects of the hangover feeling like they were dissipating away. He opened the door wider, welcoming her into the house, into his life again. “Would you like a cup of coffee?”

**Author's Note:**

> I'm new to this lovely fandom, first time writing a fic for it! I've got more written and way more planned!


End file.
